


Through The Past

by Averia



Series: It was Beauty... [6]
Category: Batman (Comics), Batman and Robin (Comics), DCU (Comics), Nightwing (Comics)
Genre: Anxiety, F/M, Hidden Agenda, Sexual Experimentation, Sexual Fantasy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-02
Updated: 2015-09-17
Packaged: 2018-04-18 16:04:35
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,282
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4712036
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Averia/pseuds/Averia
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Don’t let Damian hear those sentimental words.”</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Through The Past

_Did you love, did you love someone?_

To the bitter end, when the love couldn't come

And you want to leave, where you came from

© Rae Morris – Do you even Know?

When Alfred opened the door he had not expected Talia Al Ghul to stand in front of him, head held high and an expression on her face as if she had just seen the dirt on her shoes. He could barely refrain from raising an eyebrow of suspicion. It was never good to see her.

“Good evening, Talia. What can I do for you?”

He might have been a butler and more neutral than any inhabitant of the manor but even he had human restrictions and over the years even he had developed an animosity against the Demon Head’s daughter.

“I would like to speak with Bruce, Pennyworth.”

Her eyes were trilling into his scull as if she could bring him to back away with will power alone and she was probably used to win with such methods. She was someone to fear after all.  

“He is not here at the moment but will surely be back in a few hours” Alfred replied but he knew the women would not be kind enough to leave with the simple information.

“I will wait for him here” she reassured him with a short flicker of a sharp smile. Alfred pressed his lips together and wanted to retort, that it would sadly not be possible but Talia beat him to it when she started talking again.

“This is an important matter. I am sure Bruce would want to hear about it” something sinister crossed her face and her voice became mockingly sweet when she spoke on “before I speak with Grayson.”

He could not help but tense through her last words. Alfred had always tried to protect Bruce from her but giving Talia a change to hurt Richard - with whatever she had planed - was not on his agenda either. Bruce at least knew how to deal with her. Richard had already been drawn into their fights before and too early. Alfred would not let it happen again. No family member deserved to be part of this long lasting conflict.    

He stepped out of the way and brought her into the living room, where he served her tea and a little snack. She looked around the room standing up seemingly interested in the pictures. It was strange because she had been in this room so many times before without caring for them or shown any interest at all. He watched her stiffly from the entrance of the room. Letting her unsupervised would surely be a mistake.

“Where is my son today?” she wanted to know when she scrutinized a picture of Bruce and Dick together. It was an old picture. Dick a young boy who had not yet realised that certain fashion choices belonged only on stage. He had still been a _circus kid_ through and through.Alfred was glad they had never gotten it out of him completely. It was something the boy desperately needed. It kept his head above water when times became too difficult, when not even Batman could give him security. 

“He is together with the Titans.”

Talia glanced back at him and huffed.

“It was surely the _brilliant_ idea of Grayson.”

The distaste was written all over her face but being in his profession for so many years he noticed something like amusement in her eyes. He had no idea why it amused her. It made him nervous and he wondered why she had come today and how it concerned Richard. It was worrying. 

“Moreover a good idea” he retorted.

The next picture Talia picked up showed Richard and Damian together. It had been one of the early pictures, both of them still shaken from the death of a father and Richard only just losing his suspiciousness. It seemed as if the whole visit was about the oldest son and Alfred hoped no threat would come his way. Her lips twitched before she placed it on the counter again.

“Perhaps” she whispered and raised an eyebrow when she realised confusion had risen in him as well.

By the time Bruce emerged out of the bat cave, Talia had made herself comfortable with a book in her lap and tea at her side while she sat in the big armchair. He looked rather tired and with Talia longing relaxed in the chair it looked as if she was the head of the house. His eyes fell on Talia in an instant.

“Talia” he greeted her but did not waste time to be more polite “Why are you here?”

Alfred could see that he was irritated by her appearance, understandable considering their current relationship and the new case Batman was working on.

“A personal matter.”

“Is it?”

“Yes Bruce” she said uncrossing her legs and looking up at him. Bruce might have looked imposing and angry but Talia was calm and amused. His eyes narrowed and it nearly looked as if a growl would escape his throat.

“I will marry your oldest son.”

Bruce opened his mouth but then he seemed to realise the meaning of her words. Alfred had never seen such a strong expression conveying shock on his face but then it merge into an all familiar anger.

“What?”

“You did understand me just fine.”

His palms connected hard with the armrests, crowding Talia in the chair but she did not seem to be impressed.

“What game are you playing Talia? How did you come to the absurd conclusion that Dick would want to marry you?”

Talia smiled and Alfred realised he had never seen her smile like that.

“Why shouldn’t he?” she said pushing Bruce in a straight position by simply standing up “He already belongs to me.”

“Whatever you did to him” Bruce growled threateningly.

“You know. A long time ago I actually loved you” she said her eyes locked genuinely onto his and Bruce was slightly taken aback. But in a matter of seconds she looked as smug as ever, invading his personal space even more her hands stroking over his shoulders and her lips nearly touching his.

“Try to tell him out of it” she said mockingly, a hint of venom in her voice, her lips snarling “And let me see _you_ fail.”


	2. In Hot Baths

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was seriously awkward for me to write. Because I don’t like to write or read that kink at all but it just fit Talia. I had to do research because of that and it might not read like the smuttiest smut because I think Talia would have trouble to just feel in her current mindset. 
> 
> For everyone who could not already guess, I will ignore the whole Love Potion debacle between Talia and Bruce that Morrison created because I felt as if it was terribly out of character.
> 
>  
> 
> **Warning: Face-Sitting**

_I won't be turning up the radio singing "Baby You're The One"._

_I know sometimes I get angry, and I say what I don't mean._

_I know I keep my heart protected, far away from my sleeve._

_But don't ever question if my heart beats only for you_

_It beats only for you._

_© My Kind Of Love – Emeli  Sandé_

 

Talia raised an eyebrow as she walked into the bath to find Richard in the steaming tub. She had never stopped wondering why he liked taking baths in nearly boiling water. Maybe it was meant to keep her out. When she came nearer, he slowly opened his eyes and looked up at her with a smile on his face. He titled his head back and Talia leaned down to give him a quick peck on his lips, careful not to let her hair fall into the water. It would probably go up in flames. 

Richard nearly pouted when she left it at that. She had thought Bruce would have contacted him already but Richard was far too calm for that. It had been a rash decision, nearly too rash for her taste. She had come to the manor simply out of spite because she had wanted to spit one sentence in his face. _I fucked another one of your so-called sons_. There was still anger in her chest she desperately wanted to unleash and she nearly hurled the slightly changed sentence at Richard just to see his reaction.

“I would like to try something different today.”

Richard tilted his head to the side and she sat down on the bathtub. Her long fingernails left light pink stripes behind when she scraped them over his cheeks, light stubble was already appearing on his skin. He waited for her to say more, his eyes never leaving her face even when his expression became slightly troubled the longer she kept her pause. She smirked and lowered her head as if she wanted to share a secret.

“Did you ever let someone fuck your face?”

His eyes widened and his face grew warm under her touch, he nearly spluttered and not just because she had used the word fuck.

 _Perfect._ It was nothing more than a purr echoing in her head. 

“Hmm, I thought you would have experienced something akin with the alien.”

“Kory never liked the… this stuff. It remembered her” he cut himself off before he could reveal sensitive information and looked at her with a scrunched up face.

“Are you up to it?” she asked, _this stuff_ had always held an appeal for her, but actually wanting to do it with somebody was another thing. It had been a nice fantasy of hers nothing more, nothing real because she would never have trusted anyone with her fantasies before. With her desires- 

“Why do you want to?” he asked, pushing a little bit out of the water to lay his head on her thigh. She scowled when her jeans grew wet but he grinned up at her and she flicked a finger against his nose.

“I like it when you lick me. It’s not so different.”

Dick hummed but did not stop looking at her. She hated when he wanted her to talk about reasons and feelings. Growing up as an assassin had thought her to keep them secret after all.  

“Forget it. It was just a whim,” she said standing up but Dick caught her wrist. She could have gotten out of the hold easily, it was rather lose.

“I have nothing against being overpowered during sex Talia,” he said, voice full of intent but something in the tone made her look back. Dick was biting his lip, his eyes concentrating on the floor.

“I just don’t like… I can’t be overly passive” he gritted his teeth. Regret? Anger? Guilt? Fear? “It happened a long time ago.”

She entangled their hands. Never had she seen so much self-hatred reflected on his face.

“Just tell me why and I will be alright,” he said but there was something in his eyes she recognised, something she had seen often enough in her life.

“Who?”

The word felt like sharp ice on her lips when she realised what he was talking about. Did anybody else know about this?

He shook his head and pressed his eyelids together.

“Don’t. Just don’t. Not now.”  

She stared at him. This would be the perfect time to crush him. Strip him bare with fear and taking pleasure out of it while he would only feel pain, despair. Perhaps she would even be able to turn him dependant on her. But that wasn’t her goal. She had enough puppets, what she needed was someone she could trust and love, someone who trusted her and loved her just as much. And she knew even if it would work, she would feel the pain and despair just as much.  

“I think it would give both of us pleasure. I want to do things with you I know I will only ever do with you because I trust you, Richard. Let me show you that you can leave _this thing_ behind like all the others. Let me show you that you can trust me too.”

Dick looked at her, surprised but the smile she genuinely _loved_ was back on his lips.

“Don’t let Damian hear those sentimental words.”

“I won’t” they were not for her son anyway, for no one but the man in front of her.    

She walked out of the bathroom into the bedroom that had long ago become theirs rather than simply his. She knew he would not bother putting clothes on and decided to take hers off on her own. The thought alone excited her and she lay down on the bed with a sigh, fingertips brushing over her stomach, not touching the gathering heat between her legs. 

It did not take long before Dick joined her; he still looked a little bit itchy but his eyes dilated the second he saw her. He crawled on top of her, hair still wet.     

They kissed longer this time, teasing each other with their tongues and teeth. She wanted to take away the nervousness. 

The way her body pressed against his rendered on desperation because she could still feel the rage in her chest. He was warm, his fingertips slightly bloated from the water and she loved nothing more. She rolled over him looking down at him, still kissing him while his hands roamed freely over her body and they left unseen patterns on her skin. It made her itch, made her grave. She hungered for him. 

She cupped his cheeks looking down into the blue eyes and smiled at the nod and the short dry kiss. She fumbled out a preservative from the nightstand and ripped it until it formed a broader area.

“It's safer and I can kiss you afterwards.”

The words were only spoken to help with his anxiety. They both knew how this worked. Even when she had first guided his face to her clit she had not wanted to give him access without protection. They always had wounds from a fight. It was easy for them to get the most inconvenient illnesses.  

“Tip my waist three times if my weight gets too heavy. I’m not sure if I would hear any safe word.” 

Richard murmured an acknowledgement under her and slowly relaxed into the cushions. Talia kissed his nose, lingering for a few seconds. His eyes fluttered shut for a moment and he opened his mouth to breathe out deeply, for a moment it even seemed as if he wanted to say something. She waited a second longer.   

Slowly she settled herself over him, he locked his hand behind her waist while her hands flexed around his head tilting him back a little bit. The first contact was nice, his lips touching her and she could feel them move. It was hard to settle down slowly and the moment she could feel the contours of his face felt heavenly. His tongue flicked over her, into her and she let out a sigh, slowly settling more weight on him pressing him back into the cushions. 

For a moment she lost herself in the feeling until his arms flexed around her tensing and his chest jerked up with a harsh breath. She pulled up instantly and started caressing his forehead to calm him down. The blue eyes looked at her unsure. Her grip around his face tightened for a moment but then she settled back on his chest instead of his face. His breath was cut short by it but he just seemed glad that she had indeed stopped.

He took the preservative off his face and she could see that he was shaking slightly.

“I’m sorry,” he said after a short moment and she knew she should be the one apologizing.  

“It is normal to dislike certain practices of the sexual kind,” she said instead and rolled off of him. It was silent between them for a moment and she touched his hand lightly.

“You could still use your tongue differently.”

Dick blinked dumbfounded as if he could not believe her but then a soft laugh escaped his lips.

“Never thought I would get a sex addict” he murmured and Talia did not say anything to the joke. They lay like this for a while and Talia could feel the coldness creeping back into her body and the anger still burned in her chest, more irritating than before. Then she could feel his hands on her again and she watched mesmerized when he crawled between her legs.

“What? Thought I would back out?” he asked kissing her inner thigh and she caught his chin before he could lower his head. She wanted to tell him that he did not need to do this, that it was alright, that she could wait.

“Make me feel good.”

He smiled.

“Always, Tal.”

She could feel the preservative against her sex and then his tongue intruded her. She clawed at his head and locked her legs tight around him. Who needed Bruce anyway if she could simply have him?    

“Your mouth is the best part of you, Grayson,” she said haughtily “On my body and with words.”

She still could not believe how often Richard had brought her over the edge with this. She had to fake orgasms so often in her life it seemed unreal.

Dick huffed between her thighs.    

“I love you too, Talia.”


	3. Awakening

I've got too comfortable and stopped

_Trying to find out what I want_

I need to open up my heart

© Rae Morris – From Above

 

When he woke up in the morning, the other side of his bed was empty but there was still a rest of warmth clinging to it and he inhaled the lingering sent. It helped his pounding head. The lack of sleep was starting to take its toll and he had missed to drink enough water too. He groaned into his hand when he slowly opened his eyes felt something metallic pressing down against his skin, confused he spread his fingers in front of him. He needed to blink a few times before he could make out the object.

Why was there a ring on his finger?

For a while he simply stared at the silver ring, than he flexed his hands as if to test if it was real. Slowly he stood up, still focused on the ring and walked into the kitchen. Talia was sitting in one of the chairs eating an apple and looking down at her phone as if there was nothing out of the ordinary and he stood in their apartment like a lost lamp for a few seconds until he found his voice.

“Tal, why is there a ring on my finger?”

When she looked up he could see that she struggled not to burst out into laugher and he wondered how he looked. Probably how he felt.  

“So you won’t get lost, puppy” she retorted after a moment and stood up. Standing in front of him she folded their fingers together. A second ring gleamed on her finger.

He had known it but seeing it was a completely different thing. It scared him how fast he started to grin and how fast joy took over his whole being.

“Was this really the best time you could find to go all ninja on me?”

Talia cocked an eyebrow, one hand propped into her waist.

“I’m sure I can find more times” she said amused but he knew she still waiting for an answer. They felt good together, sure. Talia was more lovey-dovey than she would ever admit and he liked the way she was opening up a bit more every day. Despite that he had never thought that she would possibly want to marry him. It felt surreal and he could hear warning bells ringing in his head, that she wanted something, that all this had a reason.

“Richard?”

Then again, their relationship was unlike Bruce’s and hers. He had been around back then and had seen their love. It were not only the vacations with Damian that gave their relationship, another flare another shot on actually being one. They had slept in one bed like a family.

“Yes.”


End file.
